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A $12 billion program to help farmers stung by Trump's trade war has aided few

America’s farmers have been shut out of foreign markets, hit with retaliatory tariffs and lost lucrative contracts in the face of President Trump’s trade war. But a $12 billion bailout program Mr. Trump created to “make it up” to farmers has done little to cushion the blow, with red tape and long waiting periods resulting in few payouts so far.According to the Department of Agriculture, just $838 million has been paid out to farmers since the first $6 billion pot of money was made available in September. Another pool of up to $6 billion is expected to become available next month. The government is unlikely to offer additional money beyond the $12 billion, according to Sonny Perdue, the agriculture secretary.The program’s limitations are beginning to test farmers’ patience. The trade war shows no signs of easing, with China and the United States locked in a stalemate that has reduced American farmers’ access to a critical market for soybeans, farm equipment and other products. Europe is planning more retaliatory tariffs on top of those already imposed on American peanut butter and orange juice, and Canada and Mexico continue to levy taxes on American goods, including on pork and cheese.“I don’t think this is going to be enough to compensate them,” said Eric Belasco, an economist at Montana State University and a scholar at the American Enterprise Institute. “It seems like there’s not really an end in sight.”So far, farmers in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas and Minnesota have been the biggest recipients of assistance, the U.S.D.A. said, with soybeans, wheat, corn, dairy and hogs being the goods most in need of support.The bailout has also benefited two United States senators who continue to run active farms: Charles E. Grassley, the Republican of Iowa, and John Tester, a Montana Democrat.Like any program offering free money, there are also opportunities to game the system. On Monday, the watchdog organization Environmental Working Group is expected to release a report that shows city residents who own shares in farms and relatives of farmers have been capitalizing on the bailout.

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The New York Times
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